Holness urges landowners to sell unused property to government
Key Points(5)
- Prime Minister Andrew Holness is urging landowners with unused property in developed areas to approach the Government about selling their land to help expand housing opportunities for vulnerable Jamaicans.
- Holness made the appeal on Wednesday, October 21, during the handover of two-family housing units constructed under the New Social Housing Programme (NSHP) in Greendale district, Bull Bay, St.
- He said making more land available for housing could help address social inequality and reduce illegal settlements, commonly known as squatting.
- The prime minister appealed to landowners who no longer use their property, including Jamaicans who have migrated and do not intend to return, to consider making the land available for housing.
- He argued that the lack of inherited assets and access to land has contributed to an increase in illegal settlements.
Prime Minister Andrew Holness is urging landowners with unused property in developed areas to approach the Government about selling their land to help expand housing opportunities for vulnerable Jamaicans.
Holness made the appeal on Wednesday, October 21, during the handover of two-family housing units constructed under the New Social Housing Programme (NSHP) in Greendale district, Bull Bay, St. Andrew East Rural.
He said making more land available for housing could help address social inequality and reduce illegal settlements, commonly known as squatting.
The prime minister appealed to landowners who no longer use their property, including Jamaicans who have migrated and do not intend to return, to consider making the land available for housing.
“In my opinion, this is a good way to achieve social justice and equity, because some of the issues that we face today, is about settlement, and there are many Jamaicans who had no endowment, meaning they have no asset that they would have gotten as an inheritance from their parents or their family, and they are seeking to have endowment,” Holness said.
He argued that the lack of inherited assets and access to land has contributed to an increase in illegal settlements.
“Approach the Government and say, ‘We would probably like to sell you this piece of land because it’s there; it’s good for housing’,” he added.
Holness said acquiring more suitable land for the NSHP could also help ease some of the social tensions affecting the country.
He reiterated that beneficiaries must own land or have permission to use land under a long-term arrangement, such as a lease, before the Government constructs a house for them.
“Once they have outright ownership or long-term lease, then the Government will build the shelter itself,” he said.
Meanwhile, House Speaker and St. Andrew East Rural Member of Parliament Juliet Holness also appealed to landowners in Jamaica and overseas to offer suitable property for the programme.
She said the constituency had faced challenges building homes for vulnerable residents because of the hilly terrain, the locations of those in need and the fact that some beneficiaries do not own land.
Holness said the difficulties had made it challenging to identify appropriate sites for construction.
“I do not want even one opportunity for a house for a resident to go, because we can’t find suitable land, so those who have and are willing [to sell], let us know by calling the office, send an email, call or reach out to anyone in the community who can get to us, because we need suitable land for this New Social Housing Programme,” she said.
“We don’t want a single house to go to waste,” she added.
